DOCSLIB.ORG

Religious Nationalism As an Explanation for the Destruction and Appropriation of Armenian Ecclesiastical Cultural Heritage Sites Within the Republic of Georgia

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Religious Nationalism As an Explanation for the Destruction and Appropriation of Armenian Ecclesiastical Cultural Heritage Sites Within the Republic of Georgia Title Page Religious Nationalism as an Explanation for the Destruction and Appropriation of Armenian Ecclesiastical Cultural Heritage Sites within the Republic of Georgia John Guidon Submitted to Central European University Nationalism Studies Program In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Masters of Arts Supervisor: Professor András László Pap Budapest, Hungary 2019 CEU eTD Collection 1 Abstract In the years immediately following its independence from the Soviet Union, Georgia constructed one of the largest religious buildings in the world, the Sameba Cathedral. However, the cathedral was not constructed on an unassuming, vacant patch of land in the capital of Tbilisi, but on the site of a 17th century Armenian cemetery. Similarly, in 2017, the crumbling Tandoyants Armenian Church in Tbilisi was gifted to the Georgian Orthodox Church with plans to raze the church and build a Georgian Orthodox Church in its place. These are just several of the most recent and well known cases of erasure of Armenian church history in Georgia. Approximately eighty Armenian churches in Georgia were destroyed during Georgia’s time as a member of the Soviet Union, but after freedom was attained in 1991 the policy towards these Armenian churches shifted to a new direction: appropriation. This appropriation and destruction of Armenian cultural heritage sites in Georgia is the direct result of a uniquely religious form of nationalism that exists in Georgia, and it has allowed for the creation the environment in which this cultural destruction has occurred. CEU eTD Collection 2 Acknowledgements I would like to thank my thesis advisor in the Nationalism Studies Program, Dr. András László Pap, as well as other professors at Central European University, including Dr. András Kovács, Dr. Mária Kovács, and Dr. Volker Menze. The knowledge gained from taking the courses they teach has been integral to the completion of this thesis. I also wish to thank Dr. Jennifer Barry, Dr. Nabil Al-Tikriti, and Dr. Elizabeth Johnson-Young from the University of Mary Washington for providing countless hours of mentoring and advising during my undergraduate education, without which I would not have been adequately prepared for this experience at CEU. Finally, I would like to thank Nina Soulier and Will Greer for reading and providing invaluable feedback on earlier drafts of this thesis, and Alexander Clegg for taking me to Georgia in 2016 and sparking my interest in the South Caucasus. CEU eTD Collection 3 Table of Contents Abstract… 1 Acknowledgements… 2 Table of Contents… 3 Introduction… 4-14 Theoretical Framework...6-8 Review of Literature… 8-13 Summary… 14 1: Religion in Georgia and Armenia… 15-33 1.1: Origins of Christianity in Georgia… 16-20 1.2: Origins of Religion in Armenia… 20-22 1.3: Doctrinal Schism Between Georgia and Armenia… 22-23 1.3.1: Divine vs. Human Nature, and Early Ecumenical Councils… 23 1.3.2: The Council of Chalcedon… 24 1.3.3: Effects of Chalcedon in the Caucasus and the Council of Dvin… 25-28 1.3.4: The Consequences of Armenia’s Miaphysitic Position, and the Role of Mazdaism… 29-32 1.4: Long Lasting Effects of the Late Antique Period... 32-33 Chapter 2: The Destruction of Armenian Culture Sites in Georgia… 34-42 2.1: A Tradition of Cultural Destruction in the Caucasus… 34-35 2.2: The History of the Armenian Community in Georgia… 35-37 2.3: The Destruction of Armenian Ecclesiastical Sites in Tbilisi… 37-39 2.4: The Destruction of Armenian Ecclesiastical Sites Outside of Tbilisi… 39 2.5: The Reaction of the Armenian Apostolic Church…40-41 2.6: The Ruinous Effects of Cultural Destruction…41-42 Chapter 3: Cultural Heritage Law... 43-51 3.1: International Conventions… 43-47 3.2: Domestic Laws… 47- 50 3.2.1: Georgian Law… 47-50 3.2.2: Armenian Law… 50 3.3: Large Scale Violations of Cultural Heritage Laws… 50-51 Chapter 4: Nationalism as an Explanation… 52-67 4.1: National Origin Myths... 52-55 4.1.1: Georgian Origin Myth… 53-54 4.1.2: Armenian Origin Myth… 54-55 4.2: Further Georgian National Myths and Symbols… 55-58 4.3: Other Facets of Nationalism at Play… 58-66 4.3.1: Architecture and Nationalism… 58-59 4.3.2: Language and Nationalism… 59-60 4.3.3: Georgian Precedent for Establishing a Historical Narrative of a Minority Group as CEU eTD Collection “Outsiders”... 60-62 4.3.4: Modern Incursions in Georgia… 62-66 4.4: Destruction of Armenian Cultural Heritage in Georgia and La Long Durée… 65-67 Bibliography… 68-74 4 Introduction In 1994, recently free from the clutches of the Soviet Union, Georgia constructed one of the largest religious buildings in the world, the Sameba Cathedral. However, the cathedral was not constructed on an unassuming, vacant patch of land in the capital of Tbilisi, but on the site of a 17th century Armenian cemetery. Similarly, in 2017, the crumbling Tandoyants Armenian Church in Tbilisi was gifted to the Georgian Orthodox Church with plans to raze the church and build a Georgian Orthodox Church in its place. These are just a couple of the most recent and well known cases of erasure of Armenian church history in Georgia. Approximately eighty Armenian churches in Georgia were destroyed during Georgia’s time as a member of the Soviet Union, but after independence was attained in 1991 the policy towards these Armenian churches shifted to a new direction: appropriation. Appropriation in this context can be as brazen and obvious as the above mentioned example of the Sameba Cathedral being built on an Armenian cemetery, but it can also be much more subtle. These appropriations usually take place under the context of “restoration” by the Georgian government or Georgian Orthodox Church, but often this restoration just results in the Armenian features of the church being removed. Examples of these “restorations” include Armenian inscriptions being removed, Armenian ecclesiastical architectural features such as high alters being removed, and even gravestones bearing Armenian epitaphs being removed. After these sites are “restored” they are often then appropriated, being converted to Georgian Orthodox Churches or in the case of Armenian cemeteries, the interment of Georgians in these cemeteries. CEU eTD Collection The purpose of this thesis will be to explore the erasure and appropriation of Armenian ecclesiastical architectural sites in Georgia, and seek to provide an explanation for this occurrence through a unique form of religious nationalism which exists in Georgia. Additionally, contemporary international conventions and agreements will be analyzed to 5 demonstrate that the actions of the Georgian government towards Armenian cultural heritage sites within the borders of Georgia represent violations of these international agreements. As a result, this project will add to the literature on the Georgian Orthodox Church by demonstrating another area of society in which the church asserts its power and influence. Despite there officially being a separation of church and state, the Georgian Orthodox Church is the recipient of benefits which are not available to other religious groups in Georgia, and holds significant political influence. This project will show that the Georgian Orthodox Church is using this position of power and influence to further marginalize a minority group and erase its culture, as well as show that the church has been able to achieve this position of power and influence as a result of the unique form of religious nationalism that exists in Georgia. To show that this unique form of religious nationalism exists in Georgia, this project features an analysis of the literature on the late-antique origins of religious controversy between Georgia and Armenia and the formation of Georgian nationalism around the basis of Orthodoxy. Once the basis of a historical religious conflict between Georgia and Armenia, and the existence of a unique Georgian religious nationalism are established, the project then shifts to the contemporary period for an analysis of the destruction and appropriation of Armenian ecclesiastical cultural heritage sites in Georgia to demonstrate how the former can explain the latter. Finally, an analysis of international legal conventions to which Georgia and Armenia are both signatory parties will show that the Georgian destruction and appropriation of Armenian ecclesiastical heritage sights violates these international agreements. CEU eTD Collection Theoretical Framework Rogers Brubaker writes about four ways of studying the relation between religion and nationalism: (1) to treat religion and nationalism as an analogous phenomenon, (2) to 6 specify ways in which religion helps to explain things about nationalism, (3) to treat religion as part of nationalism, and (4) to posit a distinctively religious form of nationalism. This project will focus on the third explanation, seeing religion and nationalism as deeply intertwined concepts. One hallmark of this explanation is the relation between religious and national boundaries. In the strongest version of this concept, a nation would be made up of only those of a particular religion. In the case of Georgia they appear to be trending towards becoming a homogenous state made up of members of the Georgian Orthodox Church.1This intertwinement can also be seen in national myths and symbols, and this thesis investigates Georgian myths to help prove this point. By arguing that Georgian nationalism is distinctively religious, this thesis shows why Georgian churches and religious sites are given much more prominence and priority in Georgia, and why some of the preexisting Armenian sites are being removed to make way for new Georgian religious sites. The origins of the Georgian Orthodox religious tradition will be examined to illustrate their role in Georgian nationalism. Using Brubaker’s theories, the history of Georgian and Armenian religious conflict will also be examined to illustrate that this erasure of Armenian religious sites in Georgia is the result of a distinctly religious form of nationalism.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Orontids of Armenia by Cyril Toumanoff
    The Orontids of Armenia by Cyril Toumanoff This study appears as part III of Toumanoff's Studies in Christian Caucasian History (Georgetown, 1963), pp. 277-354. An earlier version appeared in the journal Le Muséon 72(1959), pp. 1-36 and 73(1960), pp. 73-106. The Orontids of Armenia Bibliography, pp. 501-523 Maps appear as an attachment to the present document. This material is presented solely for non-commercial educational/research purposes. I 1. The genesis of the Armenian nation has been examined in an earlier Study.1 Its nucleus, succeeding to the role of the Yannic nucleus ot Urartu, was the 'proto-Armenian,T Hayasa-Phrygian, people-state,2 which at first oc- cupied only a small section of the former Urartian, or subsequent Armenian, territory. And it was, precisely, of the expansion of this people-state over that territory, and of its blending with the remaining Urartians and other proto- Caucasians that the Armenian nation was born. That expansion proceeded from the earliest proto-Armenian settlement in the basin of the Arsanias (East- ern Euphrates) up the Euphrates, to the valley of the upper Tigris, and espe- cially to that of the Araxes, which is the central Armenian plain.3 This expand- ing proto-Armenian nucleus formed a separate satrapy in the Iranian empire, while the rest of the inhabitants of the Armenian Plateau, both the remaining Urartians and other proto-Caucasians, were included in several other satrapies.* Between Herodotus's day and the year 401, when the Ten Thousand passed through it, the land of the proto-Armenians had become so enlarged as to form, in addition to the Satrapy of Armenia, also the trans-Euphratensian vice-Sa- trapy of West Armenia.5 This division subsisted in the Hellenistic phase, as that between Greater Armenia and Lesser Armenia.
    [Show full text]
  • The Image of the Cumans in Medieval Chronicles
    Caroline Gurevich THE IMAGE OF THE CUMANS IN MEDIEVAL CHRONICLES: OLD RUSSIAN AND GEORGIAN SOURCES IN THE TWELFTH AND THIRTEENTH CENTURIES MA Thesis in Medieval Studies CEU eTD Collection Central European University Budapest May 2017 THE IMAGE OF THE CUMANS IN MEDIEVAL CHRONICLES: OLD RUSSIAN AND GEORGIAN SOURCES IN THE TWELFTH AND THIRTEENTH CENTURIES by Caroline Gurevich (Russia) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Medieval Studies. Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU. ____________________________________________ Chair, Examination Committee ____________________________________________ Thesis Supervisor ____________________________________________ Examiner ____________________________________________ CEU eTD Collection Examiner Budapest May 2017 THE IMAGE OF THE CUMANS IN MEDIEVAL CHRONICLES: OLD RUSSIAN AND GEORGIAN SOURCES IN THE TWELFTH AND THIRTEENTH CENTURIES by Caroline Gurevich (Russia) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Medieval Studies. Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU. ____________________________________________ External Reader CEU eTD Collection Budapest May 2017 THE IMAGE OF THE CUMANS IN MEDIEVAL CHRONICLES: OLD RUSSIAN AND GEORGIAN SOURCES IN THE TWELFTH AND THIRTEENTH CENTURIES by Caroline Gurevich (Russia) Thesis
    [Show full text]
  • 11. Nationalism, Nation Making, & the Postcolonial States of Asia, Africa
    After Independence: Making and Protecting the Nation in Postcolonial and Postcommunist States Lowell W. Barrington, Editor http://www.press.umich.edu/titleDetailDesc.do?id=126246 The University of Michigan Press 11. Nationalism, Nation Making, & the Postcolonial States of Asia, Africa, & Eurasia RONALD GRIGOR SUNY I have benefited enormously from Lowell Barrington’s clarifying essays on ethnicity and nationalism. His distinction insisting on territorial- ity for the nation but not for ethnicity is very useful. At the same time, in our many discussions, I have argued that his de‹nition of the nation remains, for my money, too objectivist. So I have amended the de‹nitions he offers in his introductory chapter as a prelude to my own discussion of nationalism after independence. My additions are in brackets. “What makes nations different from other groups,” writes Barrington, “is that they are collectives [who feel they are] united by shared cultural features (such as language, myths, and values) and the belief in the right to territorial self-determination. Put another way, they are groups of people [who believe they are] linked by unifying cultural characteristics and the desire to con- trol a territory that is thought of as the group’s rightful homeland.” My amendments here are meant to emphasize the unease I have about too concrete a notion of “cultural features” or “cultural characteristics.” Having heard all my life about the importance of preserving ethnic culture and remaining unsure about what that entailed, I subscribe to a notion
    [Show full text]
  • 40 CHURCHES in 7 DAYS 7 DAY TOUR ITINERARY* DAY 1 Meeting
    40 CHURCHES IN 7 DAYS 7 DAY TOUR ITINERARY* DAY 1 Meeting at the airport, transfer to the hotel and check-in. The first steps of your Pilgrimage will start from Katoghike Holy Mother of God and Zoravor Surb Astvatsatsin Churches, both dating back to the XIII century, situated in the centre of Yerevan. To get acquainted with the capital of Armenia, we will have a City Tour in Yerevan - one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and the only one, that has a "Birth Certificate" - a cuneiform inscription, left by King Argishti I on a basalt stone slab about the foundation of the city in 782 BC, displayed at the Erebuni Fortress-Museum. Yerevan is often pegged as the "Pink City" because of the colour of the stones used to build much of the city centre. Another name of Yerevan is an "Open-air Museum", the reason of which you will understand upon your visit. We will start the City tour from visiting Cascade Monument which is about 450 meters high and 50 meters wide. A panoramic view from the top of Cascade opens up a breathtaking city view with Opera House, Mount Ararat, Swan Lake, Republic Square and posh Northern Avenue, along which you will walk down during the tour. We will also visit Matenadaran, which means a "book-depository" in old Armenian. Indeed, Matenadaran is the pride of Armenian culture, the world's largest storage of ancient manuscripts. In fact, it is a scientific research institute of ancient manuscripts which stores more than 17 thousand ancient manuscripts and more than 100 thousand ancient archival documents.
    [Show full text]
  • Frigg, Astghik and the Goddess of the Crete Island
    FRIGG, ASTGHIK AND THE GODDESS OF THE CRETE ISLAND Dedicated to the goddesses-mothers of Armenia and Sweden PhD in Art History Vahanyan V. G., Prof. Vahanyan G. A. Contents Intrоduction Relations between Frigg and the Goddess of the Crete Island Motifs in Norse Mythology Motifs in Armenian Mythology Artifacts Circle of the World Afterword References Introduction According to conventional opinion, the well-known memorial stone (Fig. 1a) from the Swedish island Gotland (400-600 AC) depicts goddess Frigg holding snakes. The unique statuettes of a goddess holding snakes are discovered on Crete (Fig. 1b), which date to c. 1600 BC1. The depiction of Frigg embodies a godmother with her legs wide open to give birth. In Norse mythology Frigg, Frige (Old Norse Frigg), Frea or Frija (Frija – “beloved”) is the wife of Odin. She is the mother of the three gods Baldr, Hodr and Hermodr. a b Fig. 1. (a) Memorial stone from the Swedish island Gotland (400-600 AC) depicting Frigg holding snakes. (b) Goddess holding snakes, Crete (c. 1600 BCE) The Swedish stone from Gotland island depicts the godmother, who is sitting atop the mountain before childbirth (Fig. 1а). Her hands are raised and she is holding two big snakes-dragons. The composition symbolizes the home/mountain of dragons (volcanic mountain). The composite motif of the depiction on the memorial stone, according to the 1 The findings belong to Crete-Minoan civilization and are found in the upper layers of the New Palace in Knossos. Two items are discovered (Archaeological Museum, Heraklion) authors, stems to the archetypes in the Old Armenian song “The birth of Vahagn” 2.
    [Show full text]
  • Dvigubski Full Dissertation
    The Figured Author: Authorial Cameos in Post-Romantic Russian Literature Anna Dvigubski Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 2012 © 2012 Anna Dvigubski All rights reserved ABSTRACT The Figured Author: Authorial Cameos in Post-Romantic Russian Literature Anna Dvigubski This dissertation examines representations of authorship in Russian literature from a number of perspectives, including the specific Russian cultural context as well as the broader discourses of romanticism, autobiography, and narrative theory. My main focus is a narrative device I call “the figured author,” that is, a background character in whom the reader may recognize the author of the work. I analyze the significance of the figured author in the works of several Russian nineteenth- and twentieth- century authors in an attempt to understand the influence of culture and literary tradition on the way Russian writers view and portray authorship and the self. The four chapters of my dissertation analyze the significance of the figured author in the following works: 1) Pushkin's Eugene Onegin and Gogol's Dead Souls; 2) Chekhov's “Ariadna”; 3) Bulgakov's “Morphine”; 4) Nabokov's The Gift. In the Conclusion, I offer brief readings of Kharms’s “The Old Woman” and “A Fairy Tale” and Zoshchenko’s Youth Restored. One feature in particular stands out when examining these works in the Russian context: from Pushkin to Nabokov and Kharms, the “I” of the figured author gradually recedes further into the margins of narrative, until this figure becomes a third-person presence, a “he.” Such a deflation of the authorial “I” can be seen as symptomatic of the heightened self-consciousness of Russian culture, and its literature in particular.
    [Show full text]
  • The Effects of Nationalism on Territorial Integrity Among Armenians and Serbs Nina Patelic
    Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2008 The Effects of Nationalism on Territorial Integrity Among Armenians and Serbs Nina Patelic Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES THE EFFECTS OF NATIONALISM ON TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY AMONG ARMENIANS AND SERBS By Nina Patelic A Thesis submitted to the Department of International Affairs in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Degree Awarded: Spring Semester, 2008 The members of the Committee approve the thesis of Nina Pantelic, defended on September 28th, 2007. ------------------------------- Jonathan Grant Professor Directing Thesis ------------------------------- Peter Garretson Committee Member ------------------------------- Mark Souva Committee Member The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. ii ACKOWLEDGEMENTS This paper could not have been written without the academic insight of my thesis committee members, as well as Dr. Kotchikian. I would also like to thank my parents Dr. Svetlana Adamovic and Dr. Predrag Pantelic, my grandfather Dr. Ljubisa Adamovic, my sister Ana Pantelic, and my best friend, Jason Wiggins, who have all supported me over the years. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………..v INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………….1 1. NATIONALISM, AND HOW IT DEVELOPED IN SERBIA AND ARMENIA...6 2. THE CONFLICT OVER KOSOVO AND METOHIJA…………………………...27 3. THE CONFLICT OVER NAGORNO KARABAKH……………………………..56 CONCLUSION………………………………………………………………...……….89 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………93 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH………………………………………………………….101 iv ABSTRACT Nationalism has been a driving force in both nation building and in spurring high levels of violence. As nations have become the norm in modern day society, nationalism has become detrimental to international law, which protects the powers of sovereignty.
    [Show full text]
  • Javakheti After the Rose Revolution: Progress and Regress in the Pursuit of National Unity in Georgia
    Javakheti after the Rose Revolution: Progress and Regress in the Pursuit of National Unity in Georgia Hedvig Lohm ECMI Working Paper #38 April 2007 EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR MINORITY ISSUES (ECMI) ECMI Headquarters: Schiffbruecke 12 (Kompagnietor) D-24939 Flensburg Germany +49-(0)461-14 14 9-0 fax +49-(0)461-14 14 9-19 Internet: http://www.ecmi.de ECMI Working Paper #38 European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) Director: Dr. Marc Weller Copyright 2007 European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) Published in April 2007 by the European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) ISSN: 1435-9812 2 Table of Contents I. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................4 II. JAVAKHETI IN SOCIO-ECONOMIC TERMS ...........................................................5 1. The Current Socio-Economic Situation .............................................................................6 2. Transformation of Agriculture ...........................................................................................8 3. Socio-Economic Dependency on Russia .......................................................................... 10 III. DIFFERENT ACTORS IN JAVAKHETI ................................................................... 12 1. Tbilisi influence on Javakheti .......................................................................................... 12 2. Role of Armenia and Russia ............................................................................................. 13 3. International
    [Show full text]
  • Armenia, Republic of | Grove
    Grove Art Online Armenia, Republic of [Hayasdan; Hayq; anc. Pers. Armina] Lucy Der Manuelian, Armen Zarian, Vrej Nersessian, Nonna S. Stepanyan, Murray L. Eiland and Dickran Kouymjian https://doi.org/10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.T004089 Published online: 2003 updated bibliography, 26 May 2010 Country in the southern part of the Transcaucasian region; its capital is Erevan. Present-day Armenia is bounded by Georgia to the north, Iran to the south-east, Azerbaijan to the east and Turkey to the west. From 1920 to 1991 Armenia was a Soviet Socialist Republic within the USSR, but historically its land encompassed a much greater area including parts of all present-day bordering countries (see fig.). At its greatest extent it occupied the plateau covering most of what is now central and eastern Turkey (c. 300,000 sq. km) bounded on the north by the Pontic Range and on the south by the Taurus and Kurdistan mountains. During the 11th century another Armenian state was formed to the west of Historic Armenia on the Cilician plain in south-east Asia Minor, bounded by the Taurus Mountains on the west and the Amanus (Nur) Mountains on the east. Its strategic location between East and West made Historic or Greater Armenia an important country to control, and for centuries it was a battlefield in the struggle for power between surrounding empires. Periods of domination and division have alternated with centuries of independence, during which the country was divided into one or more kingdoms. Page 1 of 47 PRINTED FROM Oxford Art Online. © Oxford University Press, 2019.
    [Show full text]
  • The Caucasus Globalization
    Volume 8 Issue 3-4 2014 1 THE CAUCASUS & GLOBALIZATION INSTITUTE OF STRATEGIC STUDIES OF THE CAUCASUS THE CAUCASUS & GLOBALIZATION Journal of Social, Political and Economic Studies Volume 8 Issue 3-4 2014 CA&CC Press® SWEDEN 2 Volume 8 Issue 3-4 2014 THE CAUCASUS & GLOBALIZATION FOUNDED AND PUBLISHED BY INSTITUTE OF STRATEGIC STUDIES OF THE CAUCASUS Registration number: M-770 Ministry of Justice of Azerbaijan Republic PUBLISHING HOUSE CA&CC Press® Sweden Registration number: 556699-5964 Registration number of the journal: 1218 Editorial Council Eldar Chairman of the Editorial Council (Baku) ISMAILOV Tel/fax: (994 – 12) 497 12 22 E-mail: [email protected] Kenan Executive Secretary (Baku) ALLAHVERDIEV Tel: (994 – 12) 561 70 54 E-mail: [email protected] Azer represents the journal in Russia (Moscow) SAFAROV Tel: (7 – 495) 937 77 27 E-mail: [email protected] Nodar represents the journal in Georgia (Tbilisi) KHADURI Tel: (995 – 32) 99 59 67 E-mail: [email protected] Ayca represents the journal in Turkey (Ankara) ERGUN Tel: (+90 – 312) 210 59 96 E-mail: [email protected] Editorial Board Nazim Editor-in-Chief (Azerbaijan) MUZAFFARLI Tel: (994 – 12) 598 27 53 (Ext. 25) (IMANOV) E-mail: [email protected] Vladimer Deputy Editor-in-Chief (Georgia) PAPAVA Tel: (995 – 32) 24 35 55 E-mail: [email protected] Akif Deputy Editor-in-Chief (Azerbaijan) ABDULLAEV Tel: (994 – 12) 561 70 54 E-mail: [email protected] Volume 8 IssueMembers 3-4 2014 of Editorial Board: 3 THE CAUCASUS & GLOBALIZATION Zaza D.Sc. (History), Professor, Corresponding member of the Georgian National Academy of ALEKSIDZE Sciences, head of the scientific department of the Korneli Kekelidze Institute of Manuscripts (Georgia) Mustafa AYDIN Rector of Kadir Has University (Turkey) Irina BABICH D.Sc.
    [Show full text]
  • First Capitals of Armenia and Georgia: Armawir and Armazi (Problems of Early Ethnic Associations)
    First Capitals of Armenia and Georgia: Armawir and Armazi (Problems of Early Ethnic Associations) Armen Petrosyan Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Yerevan The foundation legends of the first capitals of Armenia and Georgia – Armawir and Armazi – have several common features. A specific cult of the moon god is attested in both cities in the triadic temples along with the supreme thunder god and the sun god. The names of Armawir and Armazi may be associated with the Anatolian Arma- ‘moon (god).’ The Armenian ethnonym (exonym) Armen may also be derived from the same stem. The sacred character of cultic localities is extremely enduring. The cults were changed, but the localities kept their sacred character for millennia. At the transition to a new religious system the new cults were often simply imposed on the old ones (e.g., the old temple was renamed after a new deity, or the new temple was built on the site or near the ruins of the old one). The new deities inherited the characteristics of the old ones, or, one may say, the old cults were simply renamed, which could have been accompanied by some changes of the cult practices. Evidently, in the new system more or less comparable images were chosen to replace the old ones: similarity of functions, rituals, names, concurrence of days of cult, etc (Petrosyan 2006: 4 f.; Petrosyan 2007a: 175).1 On the other hand, in the course of religious changes, old gods often descend to the lower level of epic heroes. Thus, the heroes of the Armenian ethnogonic legends and the epic “Daredevils of Sasun” are derived from ancient local gods: e.g., Sanasar, who obtains the 1For numerous examples of preservation of pre-Urartian and Urartian holy places in medieval Armenia, see, e.g., Hmayakyan and Sanamyan 2001).
    [Show full text]
  • Georgian Country and Culture Guide
    Georgian Country and Culture Guide მშვიდობის კორპუსი საქართველოში Peace Corps Georgia 2017 Forward What you have in your hands right now is the collaborate effort of numerous Peace Corps Volunteers and staff, who researched, wrote and edited the entire book. The process began in the fall of 2011, when the Language and Cross-Culture component of Peace Corps Georgia launched a Georgian Country and Culture Guide project and PCVs from different regions volunteered to do research and gather information on their specific areas. After the initial information was gathered, the arduous process of merging the researched information began. Extensive editing followed and this is the end result. The book is accompanied by a CD with Georgian music and dance audio and video files. We hope that this book is both informative and useful for you during your service. Sincerely, The Culture Book Team Initial Researchers/Writers Culture Sara Bushman (Director Programming and Training, PC Staff, 2010-11) History Jack Brands (G11), Samantha Oliver (G10) Adjara Jen Geerlings (G10), Emily New (G10) Guria Michelle Anderl (G11), Goodloe Harman (G11), Conor Hartnett (G11), Kaitlin Schaefer (G10) Imereti Caitlin Lowery (G11) Kakheti Jack Brands (G11), Jana Price (G11), Danielle Roe (G10) Kvemo Kartli Anastasia Skoybedo (G11), Chase Johnson (G11) Samstkhe-Javakheti Sam Harris (G10) Tbilisi Keti Chikovani (Language and Cross-Culture Coordinator, PC Staff) Workplace Culture Kimberly Tramel (G11), Shannon Knudsen (G11), Tami Timmer (G11), Connie Ross (G11) Compilers/Final Editors Jack Brands (G11) Caitlin Lowery (G11) Conor Hartnett (G11) Emily New (G10) Keti Chikovani (Language and Cross-Culture Coordinator, PC Staff) Compilers of Audio and Video Files Keti Chikovani (Language and Cross-Culture Coordinator, PC Staff) Irakli Elizbarashvili (IT Specialist, PC Staff) Revised and updated by Tea Sakvarelidze (Language and Cross-Culture Coordinator) and Kakha Gordadze (Training Manager).
    [Show full text]